What happens if you take a 197bhp MotoGP replica and turn it into a flat tracker? Well, this happens. It’s Roland Sands’s Desmo Tracker, as the name suggest, a Ducati Desmosedici turned dirty. Last week, we pulled it out of Roland’s Alamitos shop for a little photo session.

Photos: Grant Ray

According to Roland (who hasn’t ridden it), “it’s a fully functional Dirtrack racer with proper geometry, seating position, bar height, gearing, suspension, the whole nine.” The former AMA 250 national champion modeled it after the dimensions of an XR750 race bike.

“All new aluminum sheetmetal, subframe, radiator shrouds, offset triples, single sided swingarm, offset custom spoke 19” wheels and hubs, Goodyears, high bars, all custom Ti exhaust,” continues Roland, listing the changes he and his staff have made. “Whatever else we can throw at it. We run across new things every day. The name of the game with this machine is to keep it as simple as possible. We’re fighting the urge to make it more complicated. The true beauty of dirt track racers is really in their simplicity. I like to think this bike is a look at what could be a full factory ‘GP Dirtrack racer.’”

It’s not so much the paint or the suspension or the wheels you notice in person though. “The bike is ear-shatteringly loud,” complains Grant.